Influence of process parameters on the weld quality of dissimilar Cu-Al magnetic pulse welded sheets

Little is known about the influence of the main geometrical parameters (overlap, stand-off and free length) and the energy input on welds formed by electromagnetic pulse welding. The Taguchi experimental design method was applied for determining the underlying relations for dissimilar sheet welding of copper and aluminium. The weld quality was evaluated based on four output parameters: the weld length, the size of the interfacial layer, the lap shear strength and the thickness reduction of the flyer sheet. The influence of the overlap and free length showed to be non-negligible; this in contrast to the small amount of attention these parameters receive in other publications.